Major transitions in human evolution

Evolutionary problems are often considered in terms of ‘origins', and research in human evolution seen as a search for human origins. However, evolution, including human evolution, is a process of transitions from one state to another, and so questions are best put in terms of understanding the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological sciences 2016-07, Vol.371 (1698), p.20150229-20150229
Main Authors: Foley, Robert A., Martin, Lawrence, Mirazón Lahr, Marta, Stringer, Chris
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation, Biological
Africa
Animals
Behavior
Biological Evolution
Early Hominins
Evolution Of
Fossils
Genes
Hominidae - genetics
Hominidae - physiology
Human Evolution
Humans
Introduction
Major Transitions In Human Evolution
Phenotype
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Summary:Evolutionary problems are often considered in terms of ‘origins', and research in human evolution seen as a search for human origins. However, evolution, including human evolution, is a process of transitions from one state to another, and so questions are best put in terms of understanding the nature of those transitions. This paper discusses how the contributions to the themed issue ‘Major transitions in human evolution’ throw light on the pattern of change in hominin evolution. Four questions are addressed: (1) Is there a major divide between early (australopithecine) and later (Homo) evolution? (2) Does the pattern of change fit a model of short transformations, or gradual evolution? (3) Why is the role of Africa so prominent? (4) How are different aspects of adaptation—genes, phenotypes and behaviour—integrated across the transitions? The importance of developing technologies and approaches and the enduring role of fieldwork are emphasized. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Major transitions in human evolution’.
ISSN:0962-8436
1471-2970
DOI:10.1098/rstb.2015.0229